February 15, 2012
Today’s Text: Colossians 3:17 “And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.”
Today’s Key Thought: A wise steward of their vocation is thankful for their current career or job.
Life sometimes can seem like it comes toward us from all directions. We seem to be coming and going at the same time and we sometimes find ourselves every which way, involved in more than we thought possible. Sometimes this is because we have chosen to live life in an unmanageable way, other times it is because we have fallen asleep at the wheel of life and our lack of direction and planning has caused a chaotic crash of a lifestyle. God’s design for a Christian’s lifestyle is one that is manageable. Sometimes, because of our choices, we find ourselves in a job or career that we find not quite up to the standard we had hoped. Maybe that job is new or maybe its one you have had for a long time. No matter the kind or length of a job, God’s call for you is the same, “…do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.” God’s will for you in your place of work is to do everything to His glory and do it with an attitude of thankfulness. Sometimes we use the excuse of looking for a “reason” first before we are thankful for our current situation; yet, God tells us that whatever the situation, we are to give thanks to God. God’s grace and love to you is enough to be thankful for all you are able to do.
Application:
Does your current job or career seem chaotic or not up to the standard you thought? Have you bought into the lie that “you deserve better”? God certainly wants His best for your life, according to His will; but God also knows that you need to be thankful for what you have. Whatever you are doing; good, bad, or ugly, God’s will for you is to do it for His glory and give thanks to Him for it. Those who manage little well, are given more to manage in time.
Study the Scriptures with Ben Jennings 
I dont have a caree right now or a job, but I sometimes find myself saying I deserve better then this I’m more speical I deserve better and I know that god does want the best for me and that I should be happy with what I got, with what god himself has given me and I am most of the time but I should be like that all the time I want to be like that all the time but I think it’s one of my flaws but I will be better I wil be happy with what god has given me and am already happy now but there’s no such thing as being to happy hehe! 🙂 🙂
Mafalda you took the words out of my mouth I’m the exact way. I sometimes feel like I deserve better. I don’t though. Great devo today!! 🙂 can u guys keep alyssa in your prayers for her ear thanks love you !!! 🙂
I’ve had a tendency to feel bored after working at a particular place for a while. I like change and flexibility when it comes to a job but I haven’t always had that. Ive had many great jobs that were not that but I still had a hard time being thankful for them after a while. I did stay with them for the season that I was supposed to though and I believe God blessed that as well. Now my full time job is up to me and what I feel the Lord is leading me to do as far as raising our children. It’s been amazing and so very challenging. It’s stressful at times and you are always on call. It’s so rewarding and I feel blessed most days to be in this position. On days that I am not as thankful I try and see what’s wrong in my heart and change it so I can be thankful. One of the biggest reasons I am thankful is that Ben and I have tried to set up our lives in a way that I can stay home financially. That is a huge blessing for sure!!
God wants what’s best for us, but sometimes what’s best for us isn’t always something that we like. Unless it’s a job you really like, most of the time work is something we don’t really enjoy. But even though we don’t like it, it could still be good for us. From working we learn responsibility and a lot of other things! Above, it says we need to be thankful for what we have. And although some of us don’t like the work we have to do, we should thankful for it, and glorify God with all that we do!
I have been blessed to be able to stay home too since having Mikayla and Mackenzie. Truthfully there are days where I don’t act like a person blessed. My “occupation” is at-home mom, home school teacher, and now care taker. There are days where I am tired, annoyed, and sick of all the “work”. But then I stop to think, how blessed I am to have even had children, and that I get to stay home with them and spend more time with them than most people get to do with their children. God has given me a lot of responsibilities and I should be honored and give Him all the glory for it.